Vegan Candles

Although most candles contain animal products, vegan candles are easy to find.

Candles are a great way to set the mood and fill a home with light and pleasant aromas. Whether they are used for cozying up on dark nights, for birthday or holiday traditions, as memorial tributes, or even for spiritual practices, candles lend special significance to many occasions.

Unfortunately, very few candles are labeled with their ingredients or their vegan status. Most candles are made primarily of parafin, with the addition of a small amount (up to 10 percent) stearic acid to harden the wax and provide opacity. Parafin is a vegan petroleum derivative, but stearic acid is usually produced from animal fat. While coconut-based stearic acid is easy to find most candlemakers opt for the cheaper animal-based version, since slaughterhouses produce this byproduct by the ton.

Some premium candles are made from beeswax, which is obviously not vegan.